FAQ

What is all this noise about Plated and Jacketed projectiles?

The ‘Projectile’ is a component of the cartridge that is “projected” from the firearm, when the trigger is pulled (well, hopefully anyway), see pic:

A JACKETED bullet, has a ‘usually’ thicker coating of metal (typically copper) that surrounds the lead in the projectile. The process used for making this projectile is much different than plating and usually leaves an exposed lead core. This type of projectile often separates after hitting a target (copper and lead are no longer attached). if it separates penetration is reduced. In the case of target shooting at indoor ranges, the jacket will on occasion return toward the shooter, creating an unsafe condition. Some indoor ranges will not allow jacketed ammunition for this very reason.

Left – exposed lead core often seen in a jacket bullet

Right – Lead core is covered with plating, not standard with jacketed bullets

A PLATEDbullet has a ‘usually’ thinner metal plating (typically copper) that completely surrounds the projectile (no exposed lead core). This ultimately means that the explosion that ‘projects’ the bullet forward is not exposed to open lead, potentially reducing the amount of lead dust in the air from firing (opinions vary on this topic). Because of the processing differences in how these bullets are made, this projectile typically hits the target as one (melded) projectile, not changing penetration and not sending flying metal back at the shooter or in other random directions.

plated bullets no exposed lead core

The Noble Armory will load either style, if we are currently not offering what you need, just drop us a line to ask us to add it to our catalog. If we do not get enough requests for your particular need, we are glad to quote a customer order.